1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to cable supporting and guiding structures. More particularly, the present invention provides cable support arrangements that may be used with personal computer interface cables from input devices such as a computer mouse, joystick, or track-ball unit.
2. Background and Objects of the Invention
The use of personal computers has become common place in both residential and commercial settings. The personal computer (PC) will typically include a number of input devices, which are more generally referred to as peripheral devices, that are operatively coupled to the PC by way of interface cables. These devices include the common computer mouse and keyboard, as well as other devices such as microphones, speakers, touch pads, scanners, printers, etc. Each device may require its interface cable to be passed though a `cable port` located on the top surface of a desk or table, or down the back of the desk or table. Often, due to gravity these cables may to exert a force or maintain tension (via the interface cable) on the respective devices. When the device is a mouse or joystick the tension established by the interface cable can be annoying or even inhibit the proper or smooth operation of the input device.
There are a number of cable supporting devices known in the art. One representative example is provided by U.S. Pat. No. 5,398,895 to Whetherhult et al. This device, which is described as a "cable holder and support device", includes a weighted base unit and a helical spring having a vertical orientation that is mounted to an upper portion of the base unit. The Whetherhult device is only capable of supporting a single cable, and makes no provisions for securing and or constraining other (peripheral or input) device cables. The Whetherhult device disclosed is also somewhat unsightly for an office or corporate environment, and would require the interface cable to be hand rotated through the entire length of the spring. Further, the spring and structures associated with the spring may be expensive to manufacture. As can be clearly seen in FIGS. 1 and 7 of Whetherhult, this device is intended to be fixed to a supporting surface, with the base design requiring specific structures to support this feature.
A second prior art cord holding device is provided by U.S. Pat. No. 1,493,799 to Blei. The Blei invention is essentially a tall mast that is screwed into a supporting work surface and will flex when a cord supported thereby is pulled on. The Blei device is contemplated for use with hand-operated ironing devices. As such, it is structured to enable the iron to be operated within a very large predefined area. Due to its structure and configuration, the Blei device is not suitable to support the plurality of interface cables of a PC system, and would require modification to be used in the table or desktop manner in accordance with the present invention.
Accordingly, while the above-disclosed devices, and others known in the art, may be suitable for the particular purpose for which they were intended, or for a more general use, they would not be as suitable for the purposes contemplated for the present invention.
Objects of the present invention are, therefore, to provide new and improved cable supporting arrangements having one or more of the following capabilities, features, characteristics, and/or advantages:
simple and functional design; PA0 provides a weighted table-top base with a `position holding` mass (that does not need to be fixed to the table-top); PA0 operatively supports an interface cable of a specific input device, such as a common computer mouse; PA0 other device interface cables may be placed through or under a base unit to be quickly and conveniently constrained and/or secured thereby; PA0 provides a rotatably mounted support rod that can swivel about the base; PA0 aesthetic and simple structure; PA0 base designs having small (base) footprint; PA0 easy to configure and deploy; and PA0 economical architecture and construction.
The above-listed objects, advantages, and associated novel features of the present invention, as well as others, will become clearer with a careful review of the description and figures provided herein. Attention is called to the fact, however, that the drawings and the associated description are illustrative only, and variations are certainly possible.